Entrepreneurs

What Do We Do Next ??

Whoa, this Black Swan came in quick!!

This is a disruption the world has not seen before and will probably upend a lot of our plans – and, if you are a founder trying to juggle a million things while trying to change the world, the challenges will possibly have multiplied overnight.

Maybe the best way to rethink the path ahead is to talk about it. Since the #COVID19 epidemic has changed our lives forever, starting with our calendars – I have decided to use some of these hours to possibly help some people do exactly that – by opening my calendar for office hours. Hopefully, the long years of working with startups and new technology in the region and globally will help you navigate better.

So, if you are looking for some time to chat with me, please click on this link  and share some information about yourself. Once I have had a chance to see it, selected ones will get a calendar link to choose a time for a Zoom call.

Time to Re-work, Re-align and Re-group… and, Re-build!!

 

By: Category: Blog, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , ,

The Network Effect

The Network Effect

I have always believed in the power of teams or networks… they multiply your capabilities and significantly increase your reach. My association with TiE has been an awesome such learning.

In this interview, I speak about the beauty of being able to work outside the box as an entrepreneur and the availability of some illustrious and successful TiE Charter Members through what I call “The Network Effect”.

Having worked with some of these members, who are now friends, across various cities, it is truly a glorious network that is under-utilised and can be applied to create some of the best entrepreneurs in any field of interest. As the President of the Dubai Chapter of TiE, its my endeavour to assist as many budding and wannabe entrepreneurs as possible!

Here is the video, courtesy of TiE Talks.

By: Category: Blog, Media Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Harsh realities of being your own boss

Last week I saw this tweet on my timeline — “Have not had a vacation for three years, tell my why I should celebrate entrepreneurship?”. A very frustrated twenty-something was complaining to whoever would listen about his recent introduction to the hard reality of being your own boss.

I am not sure if you should feel his pain and sympathise, or blame him for jumping into the deep end of the sea with wrong expectations. Don’t get me wrong, I spend a lot of my time evangelising for people to do what they want to do, and not what they have to do — my definition of ‘retirement’.

A lot of glamorous words are used for this state of mind, including entrepreneurship and being in a start-up. I have been blamed to be one of the few people in the world, asking for Techcrunch to be banned by TRA in the quest to create a real start-up eco-system in the region.

The gasp of shock that follows is intended. I am in complete support of freedom of speech and choice, but the lack of local knowledge, local support and role models makes our promising young idea-people to look for more mainstream and international sources and expect the same ground rules here.

Nothing could be further from the truth as it stands here. Setting up a small business here is synonymous with a strong and regular doses of hard knocks. Besides running all around to set up a cost-effective base and getting the first few co-workers, there are an unending number of small, but irritating, procedural issues to keep you busy.

Staying focused
Once you have found the resources, paid the cash deposits (and postdated cheques) to guarantee your up-front commitment to pay the powers that be, you may begin to do what you set out to do. But then, we seem to be digressing.

Let’s go back to our friend and his quest to reach success in his chosen mission of doing a successful start-up. The truth is that a start-up is nothing but a small business like any other and has the same pressures of making ends meet.

Many, in their pursuit of the great idea, forget that the venture has to make financial sense in the first place. That an idea is cool is no barometer for a business to be successful.

The venture has to be based on solid fundamentals and sound market research. The need to generate revenue and to get to a stable footing is essential. Any and all investment into the start-up will be based on its financial potential, and not just the promise.

It would be unreasonable to underestimate the sheer hard yards required to create a successful start-up at any time, leave alone in a recessionary economy.

From failure to success
It is usually a lonely trudge in a dark tunnel for the team that decides to put its faith in its idea and embarks on the path of entrepreneurship. But this step is taken with open eyes and not for the faint-hearted. Competition is severe and the race ruthless and failure has a greater probability than success.

So it’s not unusual to find driven people focusing more on proving a point rather than building something of long-term value.

A far more important requirement in such an environment is to form a formidable team of key people and co-founders, something that is invaluable and provides for the knowledge and management bandwidth required to go past hurdles which are bound to be many.

A frequent reason for failure at this juncture is the so-called “one pillar” venture, too dependent upon a single individual, with the rest being a “hired” team. A single bout of pressure or simply burning out of the main individual may spell disaster.

So, another promising venture dies a premature death, just because the entrepreneur thought he was superman.

So, before you reach this point, let better sense prevail. Go and find yourself some worthy partners and mentors, even if it is just to share the dark, lonely trudge through the wilderness of Planet Entrepreneurship.

This article originally appeared on Gulf News.

By: Category: Media Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Striking a balance on the balance sheet

There are two ways to make money; one by earning more money and the other by spending less. The latter is a time tested remedy that gets taken out of the closet whenever the economy sneezes and the business environment feels congested. It’s prudent to keep overheads low at any time, irrespective of the economic climate, as a few saved pennies are always welcome. When you are setting up a small business or running one, money is always tight. Being intelligent and prudent at this time with your resources may mean the difference between eventual success or failure.

Making the dirham go further will be considered value that you will be able to cash in on once the company becomes successful. Doing more from less is an essential part of any business plan for a small enterprise. Usage of technologies and the internet, even if your business is not an on-line business, is a surefire way of saving cost and to generate greater mileage. A mix of technical DIY and a simple search can provide the enlightened entrepreneur with a toolkit of services which are either free or provide great value at a low cost.

Here is a jargon buster tutorial:
Use Cloud Computing and reduce dependence on dedicated hardware and related infrastructure. Services like Google Apps allows you to host a small business e-mail, documents, calendar, etc. for free. This allows you to do most of the tasks the expensive systems that larger organisations utilise. This translates into an edge over others at no cost.

Negotiate
If your company has a few telephones — mobile or land lines — consider negotiating with the telecom provider (yes, even etisalat and du in the UAE) for a better package with special offers such free internal phone calls and cheaper long distance dialling and handsets. The saving such consolidation creates will surprise you by the time the year ends.

This also provides you a dashboard to actually view your usage and to efficiently plan for the future and to plug any holes. At least in the initial phase, try to outsource as many of the tasks as you can — accounting, administration, technical support, IT, cleaning or whatever that is not core to the business. These should not be a load on your time. Whatever anyone says, even if you don’t get involved, there is a certain management overhead that essentially creeps into it and distracts you from the main task.

Social media
Communicate with your customers regularly and use more efficient and economic methods to do so. Technological advances have made it possible to use social media e-newsletters and e-mail to your advantage at almost no cost.
An effective Twitter and Facebook presence clubbed with a simple and informative website will be a great asset to the business. And if you are a social person, it may be an invincible combination and trying it out is usually free.

Find a mentor and guide to take you through the travails that any start-up faces in the early phase. However much you may know about the business, the aid of a sound head at times of challenge cannot be belittled. The idea is to find someone who gives you sound advise because he wants to not because he is enticed to do so by incentives such as stock options or consulting fees. You may even be surprised by people who would give you valuable insight for nothing! Grey hairs count in making things easier, even if it’s because someone else has committed mistakes before you had a chance to do the same. They save you from making one!

Keep your eyes and ears open and network a lot. There is no alternative to making contacts, nurturing them and to build on them. Most business opportunities come your way through people you know. This circle of people is also a gold mine of helpful resources from lawyers to accountants, technology geeks to marketing mavens. Innovators will find a way to encash this valuable asset and create successful enterprises we all will talk about.

This article originally appeared on Gulf News.

By: Category: Media Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Innovation critical to Dubai’s success

A lot has been said and seen about Dubai having built something out of what was considered nothing.

A long time ago, its founders started a tradition of welcoming people with diligence, ideas and perseverance to come here and prosper, which has continued in its various reincarnations. In recent years, its speed of growth and buildings evoked the envy of many a competitor and as the boom slowed down, the hankering began. While there are some areas where more prudence would have been desired, a lot of pioneering work often gets criticized. It does not require a rocket scientist to understand that time has come to reinvent and rebuild on the strengths, which are many, and build on its long tradition of entrepreneurial innovation.

Like our founding fathers, it’s time to welcome the creators. Creators are those who look beyond the ordinary and build things that leapfrog them and those around them into prosperity. Be it artists, designers, programmers, thought leaders or free thinkers – we need more of these to come and make Dubai the beacon of creativity and creation in the region. Remember a majority of jobs and opportunities are created by small businesses, those with less than 20 people. Reduction of licence fees, visa costs, rentals and front loading of the setting up process will make Dubai attractive for a lot of such people.

A case has often been made for the economic downturn having made Dubai an unattractive market. But then Dubai was never a local story – it was the best gateway to the whole region. The strength of its infrastructure, geographic location and connectivity are beyond compare, despite the financial downturn and impossible to match by any other city, by far.

Building on strength
Let’s build on this strength to remove all hurdles to its success. Let the government consider removing all barriers to setting up new ventures, and actually encourage small companies. In the past large corporations have had an advantage of being able to negotiate better terms due to their clout, Let’s turn it in favour of innovation and enterprise. Remove the link between license and real estate and the overemphasis on transaction-based clusters.
The downturn has made business in these clusters unviable and counter-intuitive to enhancement of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Encourage the filling up of empty real estate by people who will actively commit to create, bring innovation to the fore and create jobs and support the economy.

Let their success be counted by the number of real partnerships and enterprises they generate with the national youth. Dubai was built by people who thought outside the box – encourage this pioneering spirit by reiterating the need for such initiatives. New leaders of the national workforce need to be guided, but at the same time encourage them to think anew and not to fear failure, nor be afraid to air their ideas.

What we need is a change in sentiment to one that is encouraging, inspiring and full of positive ideas for a future that beckons. Undue emphasis has been given by some quarters on the odd headline emphasising the eternal tussle of tradition and the drive to being a modern metropolis. With growth and modernization comes a lot of responsibility and balancing the yin and the yang is a delicate are. But, in the drive to excellence we need to focus on the larger goal and probably be prepared to such instances being blown out of proportion.

What will speak louder than anything is our success to build on our strengths to achieve the pinnacle in our carefully chosen areas of excellence. The new generation is not afraid of hard work, in fact, it revels in challenging times. It’s time to channel their drive and power through the guidance of the more experienced into making Dubai cement its position as an unparalleled hub of innovation, entrepreneurship and creativity.

This article originally appeared on Gulf News.

By: Category: Media Tags: , , , , , ,

Business Councils Vital Lifeline for New Entrepreneurs

Foreigners wishing to set up a business here can feel daunted. This is where business councils representing their country of origin can help. “In a country where a support network is so important, no small or medium enterprise can succeed without the help of others to understand the environment, local customs, and for contacts with private or governmental, French or local entities,” said Fabienne Lucas, director at the French Business Council, Dubai and the Northern Emirates. “Nothing is more precious than having someone who understands the situation explain to you the do’s and don’t’s as seen through French culture before starting [a business here].” Initially, language can also seem an insurmountable barrier. When you have difficulty understanding Arabic, translating written materials like contracts can get tricky. Here too, a business council can help as the FBC does by providing a low-cost service to translate official documents for its members.

Business councils representing various countries help newcomers to the UAE set up businesses. Almost all major communities represented in the country have business councils that assist them in the initial days.

Specialised knowledge
The specialised knowledge provided by the business councils about the local market and practices can point entrepreneurs on to the right track. “The business council can direct them to the right people or institutions,” said Lucas. “We benefit from our privileged relations with lawyers, free zones, official representatives and a lot of professionals specialising in setting up businesses in the UAE, and we share all our contacts with members.” The strengthening economic recovery will create more business opportunities in the region. New players find depend more on such support networks than established businesses. More so as many of them are small or medium businesses.

The FBC has recorded increases in the number of its member enterprises each year since 2002, with the proportion of SMEs in their ranks always being the largest. Moreover, its 2010 membership survey showed the UAE was the preferred base from which to do business across the region. “Connectivity is the major reason why SMEs look to Dubai as a base,” Prashant Gulati, secretary-general of the Indian Business & Professional Council (IBPC) told Gulf News. “It does however lack support in the setting up and the financial support required to set up and encourage small businesses, especially for expatriate-owned companies.”

Major presence
For every nationality that has a major presence in the country, there is a business council. “It is important that the business council provides whatever support it can to its countrymen, who are planning to set up, and assist in developing and enhancing the local economy,” Gulati said. Entrepreneurs who are starting up should inquire with their local business council about the services on offer for start-ups. The FBC can provide for a business centre, shared assistants and recruitment services. Another benefit to being a member is the opportunity to network. For instance, The IBPC regularly organises dedicated events where speakers are invited to provide specialised information to members of the network. “The biggest support SMEs can find is a chance to interact with their peers, especially the successful ones who have been here and are leaders in their line of business,” Gulati said.

The FBC recently created ‘Club Synergie’ dedicated to SMEs. Every two weeks, 12 to 15 SMEs interact over a three-month period. At the end of the sessions, they get to know each other better and are able to find and refer business opportunities amongst themselves. In other words, a re-run of the ‘One for all, all for one’ maxim.

The benefits to being a member of a business council:

  • The member can get help in conducting market surveys, find distributors, understand the best way to set up the firm and assistance in tapping human resources or hiring staff
  • An opportunity to network with potential clients, partners, distributors, other businesses from the same sector. To get in touch with all those potential contacts on your own will take years!
  • Knowledge of the market through experts in different fields
  • Benefit from the solidarity of the different business communities in a global network
  • To create awareness of SMEs by listing in the directory of the business council

This article originally appeared on Gulf News

By: Category: Media Tags: , , , , , ,
« Older Entries